Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 52447 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52447 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
We go back and forth until I finally say, “This is an FBI directive. The end.”
“I’m going to talk to your supervisor.”
“Good luck with that.” Kit pulls us in front of the diner, and I hang up.
I exit the vehicle and Jay is right there with me. He’s getting better at estimating my next move. The afternoon has cooled the air, and the wind is biting. I hurry toward the door and eagerly enter the warm diner. Ted is behind the counter, and I wave. He lifts the coffee pot in his hand and I nod eagerly. Some people might say I should cut back on coffee because of the stimulant factor. But I just say “fuck you” to those crazy people.
By the time I’m sitting at the bar, Ted has a cup on the counter and he’s making my fluffy drink. Calvin, the manager, who I’ve chatted with before, waves at me across the room and I note another tall waiter I’ve never seen before. A young buck with dark, curly hair. I say he’s tall because he’s taller than Calvin, who’s standing fairly close to him, by at least a couple of inches. And I’ve seen Calvin and Ted side by side. They’re close to the same height.
“Whipped cream?” Ted asks, setting my cup in front of me.
“Ah, yes. Does anyone really say no to that question?”
“Foolish people,” he says, with a straight face.
He’s a stoic guy but we all have our thing. Some might say mine is being a bitch, but you know, fuck them or that, too. He scoops all kinds of whipped cream on top of my coffee and I ask, “Who’s the new guy?”
“That’s Kurt. He’s not new. He was on leave for a couple of months. Some family thing. That’s why we didn’t mention him. We didn’t think he’d really come back. But now that he has, I plan to take a few days off.”
“Before you do, can you make me a list of the regulars?” I ask, and I’m interested to see if Cathy shows up on that list.
“We don’t know names, at least not for many, but I can get you what I do know. Are you really leaning toward one of our regulars being the killer?”
“It’s a long shot, but I’m giving it a try,” I say. “Speaking of, do you know Cathy Summers, a little old lady who loves your whipped cream?”
“We all know Cathy. She’s a ray of sunshine compared to all the kids that come in this place.” Calvin is now behind the bar, and he jumps into the conversation, “Cathy’s a ray of sunshine, right, Calvin?”
“Oh, yes,” he confirms. “She’s a sweetheart. If she was about twenty years younger, I’d date her, and she probably wouldn’t even have me. We knew her husband, too. He was a nice man. Why?”
“I ran into her at the bank and we got to talking about the best place to get a cup of whipped cream.” I scooped some cream up and happily give it a taste. “It’s here. For sure.”
Calvin motions to Ted. “He came up with that recipe himself. He created half our menu.”
Kurt shows up at the end of the bar, and calls, “Two bacon cheese curly fries.” His attention lands on me. “Hi, there.”
He’s about thirty, which is the youngest of the three, but in a city like New York City, second jobs and tip-driven income prosper. “I’m Kurt.”
There’s a flirty tone to his voice, and Ted grimaces at him. “She’s an FBI agent looking for a bad guy. Be careful. Acting like a pervert is not in your best interest.”
Kurt pales. “I’m so sorry. Can I help in any way? I mean, I’ve been in Tennessee helping my sick mom, but I have worked here for years. If you think it’s someone that comes in here, I know a lot of people.”
“Make a list of your regulars,” I say. “And I need your driver’s license number.”
“Yes, sure. Okay.” He grabs a pad of paper from his apron and starts scribbling. “I can give you the address I’ve been at in Tennessee, and you can confirm I’ve been there.” He rips off the paper and rounds the counter to hand it to me. “That’s my info. I did read about that kid that died after Calvin told me he’d been into the diner. I didn’t know him, though. I tend to work the morning shift, and the college kids come in at night.”
I motion to the pen in his hand and then write the names of the victims on the back of the paper. “Did you know any of these people?”
His brows dip and then his eyes light up. “Oh, yeah. That one. Sherman Lee. Oh, shit. Sherman’s dead?” He eyes Calvin, who is now standing beside me, while Ted attends to another customer who sat down.